Following the success of its first edition, the European Commission is delighted to invite you to the 2nd European Maritime Spatial Planning Week! A week-long series of events dedicated to Maritime Spatial Planning will take place in Brussels (Belgium) from 1 to 5 June 2026, at the Nhow Bloom Hotel.
This MSP-focused week brings together key events and expert groups to foster exchange, build synergies, and accelerate progress on MSP across Europe and beyond. This year, the EU MSP Week is hosting the very first Greater North Sea Basin Initiative (GNSBI) stakeholder conference!
*Please note: by selecting one or more events, you are expressing your interest in participating. Your request will be forwarded to the organisers and is subject to confirmation.
- 1 June – Technical Expert Group on Data for MSP Meeting (14:00 - 17:00 CEST)
Format: hybrid
Audience: TEG Members
Room: Creative room 1
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached*
More information will be soon available
- 2 June - Northern European Sea Basins (NESBp) Project Meeting & Workshops (09:00 - 17:15 CEST)
Format: in person
Audience: open to the public - please note that attendance is limited.
*The workshops led by Shom and Seascape are free of charge; however, neither the organisers nor the European Comission cover any expenses related to participation.*
9:00 to 12:30: Fitness-for-use of EMODnet for MSP – led by Seascape Belgium
*Registrations for this workshop have closed as capacity has been reached. For any queries regarding this workshop, please contact nathalie.tonne [at] emodnet.eu (nathalie[dot]tonne[at]emodnet[dot]eu*)
Room: Creative room 2
This session will inform participants about EMODnet – what it currently offers and how it can be used by the MSP community, present preliminary results from the ongoing ‘EMODnet for MSP’ survey, and open up discussions with participants on the fitness-for-use of EMODnet data services for MSP practitioners. Concrete use cases will be explored, including data and metadata needs as well as usability aspects.
14:00 to 17:15: Maritime safety integration into MSP – led by Shom
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached*
Room: Creative room 2
This session will present initial findings from the maritime safety survey and involve participants in a participatory discussion on improving the integration of maritime safety into MSP processes. Topics include data availability, traffic data analysis, tools, and coordination across sea basins.
To allow the organisers to optimally prepare for the workshop, you are cordially invited to take the corresponding survey(s):
- Survey for MSP stakeholders on the fitness-for-use of EMODnet services for MSP;
- Survey on navigation safety in MSP.
This input will be used to inform the content of the workshops.
The workshop are free and will be in English.
- 3 June - NESBp Project Review Meeting (09:00 - 12:00 CEST)
Format: in person
Audience: Closed event (NESBp project members)
Room : Creative room 2
- 3 June - MEDIGREEN & NESBp Exchanges (13:00-18:10 CEST)
Format: in person
Audience: Closed event (NESbp project partners, MEDIGREEN and GNSBI members) - by invitation only.
Room: Creative room 2, 3, 4
This joint project meeting brings together partners from NESBp and MEDIGREEN to foster knowledge exchange both within NESBp and across sea basins, aiming also to enhance cooperation between the Mediterranean and Northern European seas. For NESBp, the meeting provides a dedicated space to strengthen exchanges between its different Work Packages, enhancing internal coherence and reinforcing linkages across thematic areas of the project. At the same time, it facilitates dialogue with MEDIGREEN, allowing both projects to share experiences, approaches, and lessons learned from their respective sea-basin contexts.
- 3 June - TEG on Data for MSP workshop: Data 4 MSP - From conceptual development to application (09:00 - 12:00 CEST)
Format: hybrid
Audience: open to the public - please note that attendance is limited up to 30 persons.
Room: Creative room 1
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached* — ONLY ONLINE REGISTRATION IS STILL AVAILABLE
This workshop will explore how MSP data can evolve from conceptual frameworks to practical applications supporting the monitoring and evaluation of MSP. It will present selected developments in data frameworks, analytical tools, and emerging approaches, illustrating how they contribute to a stronger evidence base for MSP.
- 3 June - EU4Ocean (14:00 - 17:00 CEST)
Format: In-person
Audience: open to the public - please note that attendance is limited up to 50 persons.
Room: Into the box
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached*
The EU4Ocean workshop will bring together youth, educators, policymakers, and maritime professionals.
Through panels, participatory exchanges, and a youth-led dialogue, it will explore how ocean literacy can support effective Maritime Spatial Planning.
Participants will engage with key topics such as biodiversity, inclusion, and stakeholder collaboration.
The event will highlight how informed and engaged communities can help shape sustainable ocean governance in Europe.Programme
Time Session Details 12:30-14:00 Networking lunch 14:00-15:00 Pannel Discussion
Planning Our Seas Together
Moderator:
- Eirini Apazoglou, EU4Ocean Coalition and EuroMarine
Panelists:
- Malena Ripken, Managing Director of the Center for Transformations and Sustainable Futures at the University of Oldenburg
- Lodewijk Abspoel, Senior advisor for European Integrated Maritime Policy and MSP, Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management
- Ljuba Ferrario, Policy Officer, Seas at Risk
- Benjamin Mifsud Scicluna, Young Ocean Advocate
- Sari Ponnet, Young Ocean Advocate
- Julliet Correa, Young Ocean Advocate
15:00-15:30 Workshop
MSP World Cafe
Three stations moderated by EU4Ocean Coalition staff:
- Bridging education with blue careers
- Connecting early and late career in MSP
- MSP fun lab: games, maps and more
15:30-16:00 Coffee break 16:00-16:30 Dialogue session
Meet a Blue Expert
Interview with Marta Pascual 16:30-17:00 Closing Eirini Apazoglou, EU4Ocean Coalition
- 4 June - Greater North Sea Basin Initiative Stakeholder Conference (09:00-16:45 CEST)
Format: In-person, no hybrid support
Audience: open to the public
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached*
The Greater North Sea Basin Initiative (GNSBI) is delighted to invite you to its very first Stakeholder event!
The 2026 GNSBI Stakeholder Event aims to increase the visibility and transparency of the GNSBI and its role in supporting Maritime Spatial Planning in the North Sea basin. The event will provide an opportunity for GNSBI members and stakeholders to become better acquainted and exchange perspectives on key topics relevant to the region.
Programme
08:45 - 09:30 | Arrival and networking coffee
09:30 - 10:00 | Opening session – Introduction to the GNSBI
10:00 - 11:00 | Panel discussion: Stakeholder perspectives on the GNSBI
This session will invite stakeholders to share their reflections on the role of the GNSBI and discuss expectations for future engagement in conjunction with a Q&A.
11:00 - 11:30 | Coffee break
11:30-11:40 | Update from the European Commission about the state of play regarding the Ocean Pact
11:40 - 12:30 | Panel discussion: Ocean Pact and the North Sea
This session will discuss the relevance of the Ocean Pact for the North Sea basin and explore implications for regional cooperation with a Q&A included.
12:30 – 13:15 | Panel discussion: Meet the Working Tracks of GNSBI
This session will present the five GNSBI Working Tracks, highlight their current priorities and identify opportunities for stakeholder engagement with a Q&A included.
13:15 – 14:15 | Lunch break
14:15 – 15:15 | Thematic breakout sessions – Session I
- The Virtual Climate Lab North Sea – increasing stakeholder engagement by bringing North Sea data to life.
- How can CIA better take priority ecological features into account?
- Greater North Sea fisheries: key insights on emerging spatial challenges.
- Fishing in Offshore Wind Farms: net gains?
15:15 – 15:45 | Coffee break
15:45 – 16:45 | Thematic breakout sessions – Session II
- The Virtual Climate Lab North Sea – increasing stakeholder engagement by bringing North Sea data to life. - same session as for Session I
- How can CIA better take priority ecological features into account? - same session as for Session I
- How to balance marine energy, nature protection, and the future of fisheries in the Greater North Sea.
- Harvesting the Wind and the Sea!
16:45 – 17:15 | Closing remarks – plenary
17:15| End of the event
Stay up to date with the upcoming stakeholder event by subscribing to the GNSBI newsletter via the European Maritime Forum website.
- 4 June - Mediterranean MSP Community of Practice Workshop (9:00 - 12:30 CEST)
Format: hybrid
Audience: MED-MSP-CoP members and participants interesed in becoming MED-MSP-CoP members
Room: Creative room 1
*Registrations have closed as capacity has been reached*
The event is the second workshop of 2026. Its primary objective is to identify initial building blocks for the development of recommendations across the four CoP thematic areas, drawing on the analysis of challenges and actions already undertaken, as well as on the draft findings of the MEDIGREEN project studies. The workshop will also serve to gather structured feedback on these studies.
- 5 June - Advancing Multi-Use through MSP: Governance, Gaps and Pathways to Implementation (9:00 - 11:00 CEST)
Format: hybrid
Audience: open to the public - please note that attendance is limited
This policy-oriented session will explore how Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) can better enable the uptake of multi-use solutions, drawing on final insights from the ULTFARMS project. With a focus on integrating low-trophic aquaculture within offshore renewable energy systems, the session will translate pilot experiences from across European sea basins into concrete policy-relevant messages.
It will highlight key governance challenges — including licensing complexity, regulatory fragmentation, and gaps in standards and certification — and propose practical pathways to address them. Drawing on governance insights from pilot, sea-basin and EU levels, the session will reflect on how MSP frameworks can support the transition from demonstration to implementation of multi-use solutions.
The session will also open an exchange with initiatives such as NESBp and the Great North Sea Basin Initiative to discuss alignment needs, remaining bottlenecks, and opportunities linked to current policy developments, including the Ocean Pact and MSPD/MSFD evolution.